Our School

by Jason Levy, Republican-American 

BRISTOL – The atmosphere had a playoff feel when the top two teams in the Naugatuck Valley League tipped off Tuesday night. By the end, as some fans made an early exit, one team delivered an emphatic statement that it is the team to beat in 2024.

Holy Cross, the 2022 NVL champs, rode its stifling defense to a 64-36 road victory over defending NVL champion St. Paul.

The Crusaders (16-0, 14-0) avenged two losses to the Falcons (13-2, 11-1) from last season, one which ended Holy Cross’ 57-game NVL winning streak, and another in the NVL title game.

“It meant a lot coming back from last year,” Holy Cross senior Isabella Oliver said. “We knew going in that this was going to be a big game and a big crowd. We just had to come out and grab back the wins that we lost last year.”

In between the JV and varsity games, St. Paul had to roll out the bleachers behind the benches as the crowd kept pouring in. Both student sections traded barbs throughout the game. Sitting right behind the Crusaders bench, the Holy Cross students made it feel less like a road game.

“The crowd brought a lot of energy, which I thought really raised the intensity,” Holy Cross junior Shania Howard said. “I think we played well based off that.”

Howard scored a game-high 24 points while Corinne Lomax chipped in nine. Rebecca Kelly scored 15 points to lead St. Paul.

Holy Cross held St. Paul to four points in the first quarter and built a 22-4 lead just over three minutes into the second quarter. The Falcons cut the lead to nine in the final minute of the first half, but a free throw by Rachel Healey and a 3-pointer by Lombardo sparked a 12-0 run that stretched in the third quarter.

The Crusaders never looked back.

“We definitely had to make a statement,” Howard said. “Knowing that they beat us twice last year, getting this win was definitely a big thing for us. We just had to stay motivated and focused.”